Hundreds of babies may be saved by a new 15-minue pre-eclampsia test

New research has found that testing protein levels in pregnant women before 35 weeks is highly accurate in identifying those at risk of developing pre-eclampsia.

 

Pre-eclampsia is a severe type of high blood pressure in pregnancy that can be fatal. Currently, high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine are used to diagnose it but the test is unreliable and can take days to confirm.

 

While it is very uncommon that mothers die from it, Professor Andrew Shennan, a consultant obstetrician, says that in the UK around a 1,000 babies die each year, and the new placental growth factor (PLGF) test means that mothers who need to be closely monitored can be identified easily.

 

Dr. Lucy Chappell, clinical senior lecturer in obstetrics, says: “The PLGF test will allow us to identify these women who require closer monitoring, giving the right package of care to the right women.”